Who remembers Cake Nights?

by 2SYN 33 Replies latest jw experiences

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  2SYN

  <FLUFF>
  At the Book Studies? They were the highlight of the month.

  Thing is, all the sisters would try to outdo each other making nice food, which amused me no end, and also kept my stomach filled up, but drove me nuts, because my mother would spend the entire afternoon making a giant racket in the kitchen and screaming @ my sister whilst doing it, just to bake a cool cake for the Book Study.

  Also, remember those last ~15 minutes before the end of Cake Night Book Studies? When you wanted to shoot the conductor because of dragging his feet and reading extra scriptures (AAARARGGHGH!), and you were sure he was doing it (it was always a he!) just to delay the partaking of the cake longer? I could've sworn those Cake Night Book Studies were always a little bit longer than normal ones.

  Then I remember, after the final prayer, everybody would just sort of crank open their eyes (except for the very elderly ones in the room, who would take a bit longer ) and stare at each other. I used to wear a manic grin (whew - it's over, Thank God!), and then I would always be the first to get up. All of the sisters would disappear into the kitchen (living up to those 'sisterly submissive role models' quite nicely), leaving me in the 'kindly' clutches of the Elders. The only thing that's worse than having to spend time in the same room as an Elder, is having to do it while waiting to eat Cake, damnit!

  Those were awkward moments! Nobody wanted to be the first to get up, (as they would look 'unfaithful' or something), so everyone would just continue sitting there. During my final days in the BORG, I sometimes felt like jumping up and screaming "HELLO! THE BOOK STUDY IS FINISHED! YOU CAN WAKE UP NOW!"

  </FLUFF>

  Anybody here have similiar experiences?

  
  "...the greater will be the beneficial effect, because you get more of the ultra-violet rays, which are healing" - The Golden Age
  [SYN], UADA - Unseen Apostate Directorate of Africa.
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  Hmmm

  In my some-teen-odd years in, we had maybe two cake nights. I would hear friends talk about their halls doing it on a montly or bi-monthly basis and it drove me nuts! We had plenty of overweight sisters at the hall who I just KNEW could bake a mean cake!

  Hmmm
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  Nathan Natas

  How long ago was this? I have vague memories now that you've mentioned it, like in the late 50's, maybe??? I was in New York City. Where are your memories from?

  - Nathan Natas, UADNA
  (Unseen Apostate Directorate of North America)
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  2SYN

  Only a couple of years back, but I stay in South Africa. Maybe it's different for other countries? I don't really know, as I haven't travelled outside the borders of my own country yet

  
  "...the greater will be the beneficial effect, because you get more of the ultra-violet rays, which are healing" - The Golden Age
  [SYN], UADA - Unseen Apostate Directorate of Africa.
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  Ranchette

  We called it "snack night".

  My hubby was a bookstudy conductor for years and on that night we would have only a 40 to 45 min study and no one ever complained about about breaking early for "snack night".

  Ranchette
  
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  ISP

  Cake nights??......never had one in 20 yrs in the WTS!

  ISP
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  2SYN

  ISP: You don't know what you were missing! All those supple young sisters sliding their lips over the rich, hard, creamy....CAKE!

  
  "...the greater will be the beneficial effect, because you get more of the ultra-violet rays, which are healing" - The Golden Age
  [SYN], UADA - Unseen Apostate Directorate of Africa.
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  flower

  lol - you described it perfectly syn.

  the worst ones were when we were studying one of those hard, boring books like the Daniel book or Revelation book. The meeting felt like it would never end and you just wanted it to be over already so you could get some grub.
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  Scully

  SYN:

  My parents hosted the Book Study at their home for many years, and yes, once a month, sometimes twice a month, we had coffee and dessert afterward. Only it wasn't a pot-luck thing where everybody brought something. My mom could out-bake anybody. (She now makes extra money making wedding cakes!) And back then her piece-de-resistance were her German tortes. She would make a couple of different ones and I'd make a couple of different kinds of cookies or squares (you know that scripture about "training up a young girl yada yada yada").

  Anyway, the tradition was carried on when my husband and I hosted the Book Study in our home too. Only my husband, reaching out for privileges as he was, wanted to make it a weekly event. I grew to resent it eventually, even though we had sisters in our group who would contribute with their own goodies. However, our Book Study group always had close to 100% attendance. The CO once asked our conductor what he did differently to encourage people attend so faithfully, and the conductor said it was the ability to fellowship afterward because Brother & Sister Scully were very hospitable and served coffee and tea and cake afterward. The CO must have been hurt by this, because he interpreted it to mean that people were coming because they enjoyed the fellowship more than the "spiritual food" (such as it is...), and within a few weeks, the group was transferred to someone else's home. In retrospect, they did me a huge favor!

  Love, Scully

  UADNA-C (Unseen Apostate Directorate of North America-Canada)
  
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  ISP

  Sure that was a cake night...syn?!

  Wow, the WTS should do more cake night stuff to get more meeting attendances!

  ISP